They Should Go to Prison

Several recent scandals in Italy, for example the Northern League, Roberto Formigoni and the administration of the region of Lombardy or the comeback of Valter Lavitola the hustler (chapter 77 of the Berlusconi scandal) to name a few, not only give a general feeling of nausea but also provoke a desire to see certain people in jail. Lately in Italy, there seems to be a rule in force that says that those with power never end up in jail. A few exceptions apply when the person with power is vulnerable and does not have the same political protection, that is, when he no longer has power. But the people with real power never go to prison.

Take several cases that occurred in the United States such as that of Connecticut’s Republican governor, John Rowland, who was forced to resign and who was sentenced to a year in prison because state contractors paid for renovations that were done on his vacation home. What about Bossi’s terrace, his son’s car or the luxury vacation of Governor Formigoni?

In Texas, a federal judge, Samuel Kent, was sentenced to 33 months in prison for having allegedly lied about the way he treated two employees who accused him of sexual harassment. How many months would Berlusconi have been sentenced for? His lies and the cases of harassment are countless.

No fewer than 20 public officials, including the leader of the Republicans in Congress — a man with significant power — have ended up in prison for the scandal related to Abramoff, a lobbyist who corrupted many politicians with free trips, dinners and contributions to the electoral campaigns. Recently, two Illinois governors — a Republican and a Democrat — were sent to prison for corruption activities.

Obviously, trials would be necessary in order to verify all the facts. However, if it appears that Berlusconi gave 850,000 euros to Giampiero Tarantini for his silence or that he “bought” a senator, with the help of Mr. Lavitola, in order to make him change the lineup and bring down the government, why wouldn’t he be sent to jail?

There would need to be a very clear message explaining that certain things cannot be done. If they are done, one needs to pay a price, a real one.

A country such as Italy — with Bossi, Formigoni and Berlusconi in prison — is hard to imagine, but if the evidence against them were true, it would be a serious country.